NASCAR Whelen All-American Series: Emily Packard Canaan Fair Speedway Race Preview
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THE STORY
EAST MONTPELIER, Vt. – Emily Packard of East Montpelier, Vt., returns to her home track for a NASCAR Whelen All-American Series 35-lap Late Model feature at Canaan Fair Speedway in Canaan, N.H., on Saturday, June 1. Despite setting the fastest time in all three practice sessions on opening day at the track, Packard was caught up in an on-track incident and finished 13th on Saturday, May 18. Packard looks to rebound this weekend and climb back into track championship contention.
THE FACTS
WHO: Emily Packard, East Montpelier, Vt.
CREW CHIEF: Neal Woodward, Georgia, Vt.
TEAM: No. 9x Northstar Fireworks/Berlin Optical Expressions Chevrolet
SPONSORS: Northstar Fireworks, Fecteau Homes, Berlin Optical Expressions, Yipes! of Barre, VT Shifter Karts, GossCars.com, Be The Match, Rutland Regional Medical Center, R.G. Paving
BEST CAREER CANAAN FAIR SPEEDWAY FINISH: 2nd (September 2012)
LAST RACE AT CANAAN FAIR SPEEDWAY: 13th (May 2013)
WHAT: NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Late Model 35
WHERE: Canaan Fair Speedway, Canaan, N.H. (.333-mile oval)
WHEN: Saturday, June 1 – 3 p.m., practice; 6 p.m., qualifying; 8 p.m., race
NASCAR Whelen All-American Series
LAST RACE: May 25, Canaan Fair Speedway, Canaan, N.H. (PPD-Rain)
NEXT RACE: June 8, Canaan Fair Speedway, Canaan, N.H. (.333-mile oval)
CURRENT POINTS POSITION: 12th
DID YOU KNOW?
Emily Packard scored her first career Top-10 finish in an ACT Late Model Tour race when she finished 10th in the Spring Green 113 at Devil's Bowl Speedway in West Haven, Vt., on Sunday, May 5.
Emily Packard became the first woman in a decade to win a feature event at Thunder Road International Speedbowl when she won a Street Stock feature at the track last summer.
Emily Packard was voted the 2012 Vermont Motorsports Magazine Rookie of the Year, and she was also named the Vermont Sportswriters & Sportscasters Association Athlete of the Month for August 2012.
Emily Packard was one of 36 Late Model drivers from across the northeast and Canada invited to participate in the ACT Invitational at New Hampshire Motor Speedway during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sylvania 300 weekend last September.
Emily Packard Motorsports crew chief Neal Woodward is a five-time ACT Late Model Tour champion crew chief whose cars set track qualifying records at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and Beech Ridge Motor Speedway.
WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
EMILY PACKARD, Driver of the No. 9x Northstar Fireworks/Berlin Optical Expressions Chevrolet, On rebounding from a disappointing night last time out at Canaan Fair Speedway: "I'm really excited to go back and redeem myself. I've calmed down a lot since everything happened, and all my hot-headedness is gone. I feel like once a year I have a race where I drive like an idiot, and I look at it like I got it done early this year.
"The car was so awesome all day, even after we had three-quarters of a car left in the race. The car was flying. It was still fast after everything that happened. Now that we've had a race under our belt, hopefully everybody will have a good race this weekend and we'll get a good result."
On how she approaches the race this weekend: "'I'm going to have to go in looking at the bigger picture. I know I said that before – but as soon as I got there and was on top of the speed charts all day, I got impatient and I made stupid decisions. I know that I made mistakes and I'm going to take responsibility for that and not blame all the other drivers.
"This time I really do mean it when I say I'm looking at the big picture."
On her comfort level at Canaan: "Canaan has been my home all along. It's always been my fall-back track. You hold onto that kind of stuff. I was testing it at Canaan when I was 14. It's always been my home, and I've put a lot of laps in around that place. We feel really comfortable there.
"Everybody looks at Thunder Road as our home track, because it's only 15 minutes from home, but it's not. I'm working up to that, but I'm not as comfortable there yet. Canaan is the place I consider my home."
UP NEXT
Emily Packard will tackle a tripleheader of Late Model racing next weekend, Friday, June 7 through Sunday, June 9... Packard will run the second leg of the Vermont State Championship Late Model Series – the People's United Bank 100 – at Devil's Bowl Speedway in West Haven, Vt., on Friday, head to Canaan Fair Speedway for the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series on Saturday and then return to Thunder Road International Speedbowl for the start of weekly competition there on Sunday afternoon.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Follow Emily Packard on Facebook: facebook.com/EmilyPackardMotorsports
Follow Emily Packard on Twitter: @EmilyPackard9
Follow GWC Motorsports Marketing on Facebook: facebook.com/GWCMotorsports
Follow GWC Motorsports Marketing on Twitter: @GWCMotorsports
Travis Barrett
GWC Motorsports Marketing
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